Lao National Radio (LNR) is the national radio station in Laos. Founded in 1960, the radio was merged with LNTV in 1983 for a period of 10 years before they were separated again. In 1960, the station was established under the name of Radio Pathet Lao, in Hua Phan province, as a tool aimed at helping the revolutionaries reach out to the people. As newspapers and television stations are not available in the countryside, LNR has been for years the key source of information for most of the people in the country. According to local estimates, more than 70% of the people in Laos tune in to the LNR on a regular basis.
Media assets
Radio: LNR Program 1, Phoenix Radio, MEDIAONE Radio
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
LNR operates under the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism. The management of the station is appointed by the government, according to local journalists and experts.
Source of funding and budget
Like most of the media in Laos, LNR does not release annual reports or any other documents about its operation. LNR is fully funded by the government, according to information from local journalists and experts.
Editorial independence
All media in Laos operate under a drastic censorship system, with the government closely following the content aired on LNR. LNR’s journalists are summoned on a regular basis to the ministry of information to discuss and get instructions about how they should report.
No statute and no independent assessment or oversight mechanism to validate the editorial independence of LNR have been identified. The station’s work is closely supervised by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.
October 2023